'Xanana' release 'to be meaningful'<\/p>\n
Visiting U.S. Congressmen urged the Indonesian government on
\nJan. 13 to release East Timor guerrilla leader Jose Alexandre
\n\"Xanana\" Gusmao who is serving a 20-year sentence. Military
\nobserver Let. Gen. (ret.) Hasnan Habib addresses the issue.<\/p>\n
Question: The government reportedly plans to release Xanana
\nfrom prison. Will his release help Indonesia expedite a solution
\nto the East Timor issue?<\/p>\n
Hasnan: Oh, yes. A plan for his release will be a progressive
\nidea on the part of the government as he is recognized by the
\ninternational community as a political, and not a criminal,
\nprisoner. The fact that United Nations officials and other
\nforeign envoys wanted to visit him in prison indicates that he is
\nnot a criminal prisoner.<\/p>\n
Moreover, Xanana, after being released, will no longer go
\nunderground in his struggle for the interests of the East
\nTimorese people. His release will offer advantages because he
\ndoes not reject the government's offer of broad-based autonomy
\nfor the territory, knowing that East Timor has no adequate
\nresources if it is immediately set free from Indonesia. Some of
\nthe East Timorese people who are proposing the holding of a
\nreferendum in the territory also regard Xanana as their leader.<\/p>\n
What if Xanana stages a rebellion as soon as he is released?<\/p>\n
Setting him free will surely be based on the understanding
\nthat he will help all parties to look for a peaceful solution
\nwhich will be most beneficial to the East Timorese people.<\/p>\n
The government, which claims to be working in the interests of
\nthe people, should pay more attention to the interests of the
\nEast Timorese.<\/p>\n
Do you consider that offering broad-based autonomy is better
\nthan holding a referendum?<\/p>\n
The government has offered broad-based autonomy for the
\nterritory, while some of the East Timorese want their territory
\nto remain integrated with Indonesia, some want a referendum and
\nsome others want immediate independence.<\/p>\n
Now that the government's offer is the most outstanding, while
\nthe balance of the numbers of people wanting integration, a
\nreferendum and independence is not known yet, we'd better start
\nwith the offered autonomy. But in formulating the autonomy, we
\nhave to accommodate the interests of the East Timorese people.<\/p>\n
The government, therefore, should hold negotiations with the
\nEast Timorese people, including those wanting to have a
\nreferendum, to formulate the autonomous authorities that the
\nterritory will enjoy.<\/p>\n
The East Timorese will then be given a chance to implement
\nthe autonomy, whose formulation is approved by both parties, for
\nsome three to five years. During that period, the government and
\nits Armed Forces (ABRI) should try to correct all their past
\nmistakes in order to win the hearts of the East Timorese people.<\/p>\n
After the implementation of the autonomy for some three to
\nfive years, we must give a chance to the East Timorese to
\ndetermine their own fate through a referendum, asking whether
\nthey want to continue to be part of Indonesia with a certain
\nstatus -- as an autonomous province or even within a federal
\nstate -- or to go independent.<\/p>\n
During this reform era, we have to offer sovereignty to the
\npeople, including those in East Timor.<\/p>\n
Suppose the East Timorese won independence, won't it encourage
\nothers to do so?<\/p>\n
Many friends in other countries have also asked me such a
\nquestion. I told them that some people, not only those in East
\nTimor but also in other provinces like Aceh and Irian Jaya,
\nwanted separation from Indonesia. But they are just small
\nminorities.<\/p>\n
I also told them that the majority of people in those
\nprovinces just wanted fairer treatment and fairer shares of
\nfinancial resources from the central government.<\/p>\n
Aceh, for example, currently demands an 80 percent share of
\nresources it produces, while the government can take the
\nremaining 20 percent.<\/p>\n
People in the provinces know that major portions of their
\nresources go to the central government and that some of them are
\ncorrupted by its officials.<\/p>\n
Will Australia's recent policy shift on East Timor affect
\nIndonesia's international diplomacy?<\/p>\n
I do not think so because Australia maintains its recognition
\nof Indonesia's sovereignty over the territory -- as shown by its
\nrejection of a proposal that it renegotiates or revises its Timor
\nGap agreement with Indonesia.<\/p>\n
However, the new policy is a warning that Indonesia must be
\nmore flexible on the East Timor issue. Australia might support
\nthe independence of East Timor if Indonesia failed to win the
\nhearts of the people in the territory.<\/p>\n
Who has made mistakes, the government or ABRI, if Indonesia
\nhas thus far failed to win the hearts of the East Timorese?<\/p>\n
Both. The government, for instance, has made a mistake by
\ncentralizing its policy on East Timor, including the appointment
\nof officials there. Meanwhile, atrocities in the territory
\nindicate that ABRI is too emotional in carrying out its tasks.
\n(riz)<\/p>",
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